Mission Trip Opportunities

Cedarkirk Invites You to Take the...



       

A great opportunity to lead Middle School, High School, or College students on a journey of mission and personal transformation.  The Challenge To Change program is designed to combine hands-on missions with fact finding opportunities that increase awareness of poverty and social justice issues.

In cooperation with Beth-El Mission, a farm-workers mission in Wimauma, Florida, and Metropolitan Ministries, an inner-city family mission located in downtown Tampa, the Challenge to Change program provides your group with the full experience of service, study, worship and personal growth.

There is a basic fee of $345 per person for a 5 night 6 day trip.  This includes all meals, air-conditioned lodging, and camp activities.  Additional costs for the materials can vary from zero to $50 per person depending on the project.  Camp vans are limited so the usage of vans is on a first come first serve basis.  Transportation and activity options may affect price.
 
Typical trips are for 5 nights and 6 days, however, Cedarkirk understands and values the importance of your group and will therefore tailor the mission/education trips to best fit your group's needs.   Here is some of what we offer:

Awareness
 ~ Work in the fields
 ~ Be "homeless" for a night at camp while sleeping in the outdoors
 ~ Fact gathering tours at the mission
 ~ Interviews
 ~ Role playing making a budget

Field Work
 ~ Caring for children such as VBS or Back to School programs
 ~ Facility improvements such as painting, landscaping, or light construction
 ~ Working with families
 ~ Food or clothing distribution

Worship
 ~ Worships led by a Cedarkirk staff for your group only
 ~ Worships led by a Cedarkirk staff with another group (if another group is present)
 ~ Worships led by your own adult leadership or by the participants
 ~ Worships with the congregation at Beth-El.

Group Building
 ~ High and low ropes on Cedarkirk's site
 ~ Campfire programs

Sabbath
 ~ Camp activities such as kayaking, climbing wall, pool, and river activities
 ~ Reserve a day for a theme park or a day at the beach.
 
We encourage events for spring breaks and throughout the summer.  Call early to choose a date that is best for your group.  For more information please call or email Mark Orendorf at 813-685-4224 Ext 2.

Other Mission Events

Inn Door (Metropolitan Ministries Respite Retreat):  This annual retreat is for the residents at Metropolitan Ministries, a non-profit organization in downtown Tampa.  For three days, Cedarkirk opens its doors to the shelter residents for a time of fun and relaxation.  During the Christmas season, a time that can be particularly difficult, campers enjoy the camp life as they get away from the city and relax in the country.  This retreat relies on the Cedarkirk community for donations.  If you are interested in donating or volunteering for this event, please contact Mark Orendorf. 

Christmas International House: Cedarkirk serves as one of the many hosts for this important ministry.  CIH is a Christian ministry designed to offer hospitality to students during the Christmas holidays.  Through the hospitality of churches and civic groups, we witness to the reality that, behind diverse manners of dress, religious affiliations and political ideologies, everyone stands together as one human family.  This is a peacemaking program.  It gives students an opportunity to visit in an American home and to become acquainted with different areas of the country.   It gives them a chance to express their feelings about the United States and find explanations for cultural differences they have observed.  Students and hosts develop friendships and learn how to exchange ideas and develop relationships with people who come from countries with different ideologies."  If you are interested in participating, volunteering, or donating, please contact Mark Orendorf (See Christmas International House for further information:  http://www.christmasih.org).